Supreme Court Blocks Trump’s Mail Ballot Scheme

President Donald Trump's latest attempt to manipulate the midterms took place in plain sight. His scheme entailed forcing states to comply with late, untested mail-in voting requirements, potentially disenfranchising thousands of voters. The only thing needed to launch this plan was the Supreme Court's approval. However, on Monday, the court blocked the scheme, stating the administration was unlikely to win its argument that its Postal Service rule limiting ballot delivery was legal.

The harm of allowing the rule to take effect was deemed too great. This was just the latest in a series of Trump's corrupt and lawless actions, including attempts to disrupt mail-in voting, which he believes would adversely affect Democrats more than Republicans. The administration hoped to hide the election-stealing scheme under the guise of executive orders, rule-making, and court documents.

Only two justices publicly endorsed the plan, while Justice Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas argued for potential government authority to regulate mail-in ballots. Justice Brett Kavanaugh concurred but expressed concerns about the harm caused by implementing it so close to the election. This decision suggests that there could be three or more votes siding with Trump's attempt to implement mail-in ballot rules for the 2028 elections and beyond.

Trump has been determined to win the midterms by any means for over a year. Initially, he issued an executive order requiring citizens to show a passport to prove citizenship when registering to vote, but a federal court blocked it. He then pushed Congress to pass the SAVE Act, which also aimed to require documentary proof of citizenship.

When that failed, he issued an executive order in March 2026 instructing the Postal Service to limit the delivery of mail-in ballots, which would have allowed the Postal Service to discard thousands or millions of legally cast ballots. This was an illegal power grab, as warned by states, election officials, and legal experts. The rule threatened to disenfranchise millions of elderly, disabled, military, and other voters.

The administration acknowledged the potential harm but downplayed it as merely imposing "modest envelope-design and addressee-information requirements." In reality, failing to swiftly implement the rule would likely cause significant disenfranchisement, as the administration itself recognized. Despite this, the Supreme Court allowed the order to proceed.

In August, the court ruled that it was too early for states to challenge the executive order, contributing to pre-election chaos instead of preventing it. The Postal Service unveiled its rule on August 21, requiring states to hand over voter rolls to the Trump administration and adopt new envelope and bar code requirements. The administration also sought to create a nationwide database and lists of citizens in each state, which could be used to override state voter rolls with potentially inaccurate information.

This portion of the order was put on hold in a separate legal challenge but has since been appealed to the Supreme Court. The threat of administration meddling in the midterms through this executive order remains.